Improvement in potato-diggers



s. WEEELEE & L. V. E oUsE.

POTATOVDIGGER.

' No. 90,142. Patented May 18, 1869.

(l Alf iisd gime MICHIGANl Leners raam No. 90,142, camz May 1s, 1869.

IMPROVEMENT IN POTATQ-DIGG-ERS. 'v

The Schedule referred to in these Letters Patent and making part of the same.

To all whom, fit may concern.-

Be it known that we, SHEPHERD HiW'HnELnn and LYMA'N Vr ROUSE, of Dowagiac, county of Cass, and State of Michigan, have invented a newl and improved Potato-Digger; and we do hereby declare that the following is a full and exact description ,of the construction and operation of v the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings, makingga part of this specieation, in which- Figure 1' is a perspective vrview.

The nature of our invention consists in attaching a subterraneous comb to the underside of a plowshare, having upward-inclined teeth, extending to the surface of the groundffor the purpose of Icombing' the potaf toes to the surface as the plow isdrawn forward, where they can be conveniently gathered.

To enable ,others skilled in the arts to make and' use our invention, wewill proceed to describe its con-v struction and operation.

We make the beam A and standard B, also share 0,'of iron, cast in one piece. ,l

The bars a c a, 4a should be made of steel, about one and one-half iuchwide, and about one-fourth (i) inch thick, and are attached to the under side of the share C.

The 'front ends of bars aa c a are shaped like a sled-runner, and are made sharp, in order to cut their `way through the ground.

The rear ends of said bars are bent up, forming a comb, with the teeth inclined backward, giving them a lifting tendency as they draw under the potatoes.

The share C must be/suhciently long to embrace the entire potato-hill, and the distance between the bars a a .a a mustV be le'ss than half the diameter of the smallest potato to be dug, so 'that' if the first tooth. passes a potato it will bestruck by the secondtooth It willbe seen, that as the bars c a wa are set their 'entire Width Vbelow the share G, they will be embedded in the solid earthI below thev potatoes, and below the surface of the ground left by the share, and the spaces between the bars c c a c will be filled by the solid earth, which will prevent the said bars from working out of their position,and prevents the horizontal portion of said bars from drawing along the dirt above then), as would be the case if said bars werel set' in the rear of .the share, anddrawing-above the plane formed vby the share. l

We. are' aware that potato-diggers are so constructed,

but we purpose to set the bars c a a a, so as to out the entire depth of 'jtheir horizontal portion in the ground below, andundisturbed by said share, so. thatl the en- -tire mass of dirt and potatoes passing over the share will fall uponits. own native bed.-

The length of the horizontal portion of the bars should be -suchl as to allow of a sulcien't 'weight of earth between the inclined ends of the bars or combteeth and said share,'toprevent the' same from dragging forward, as said teeth draw through the ground broken up by the share lC.' l

The handles E E -are attached in any suitable manner.

We also purpose u'sing aplow-wheel under 'the beam,

inthe usual manner. V

Having thus described our invention, g

What-we claim as new, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is y l. The bars @when constructed, combined, and arranged asset forth.

2. In combinationwith the bars-'a a c a, the beam. 

